CA2026934C - Wrap-around carrier with handle - Google Patents

Abstract

A wrap-around bottle carrier with short end panels and reinforced side and top panels formed by folded-under edge flaps. Tuck flaps connected to the edge flaps permit folding of the edge flaps. Neck retainer openings are provided in the top panel and in the folded-under top panel edge flaps. The side panels include short angled portions adjacent the top panel.
One of the side panels contains a handle opening extending from the adjacent bottom panel into the adjacent angled portion. The carrier can be lifted by means of either the handle or the ends of the top panel.

Description

y ~~r~,, y ~ ;J W fy 2 Field of the Invention 3 This invention relates to wrap-around article carriers.

4 More particularly, it relates to a wrap-around article carrier capable of carrying heavy loads and to an integral handle for 6 lifting and carrying a heavy carrier.
7 Background of the Lnvention t3 Wrap-around carriers commonly utilized in the beverage ?~ industry to package bottles of beer and soft drinks are 1~ typically positioned on moving upright bottles in a packaging 1.1 machine so that neck holes in the blanks fit over the necks of 13 the bottles, after which the blanks are folded into place around 13 the moving bottles. The ends of the blanks are usually fastened 1~ to each other at the bottom of the carrier by locking tabs and apertures, and a handle arrangement, such as finger openings or 16 an integrally formed strap, is located on the top panel of the 17 carrier to enable a user to lift and carry the package with one 18 hand.
1~ Because carriers of this type are best adapted for packages containing relatively few bottles, such as six or 21 eight, an improved carrier designed to carry a greater number of heavy bottles, such as twelve bottles of 16-fluid ounce size, ?3 tugs developed. Such a carrier, which is disclosed ~in U.S.
2~ Patent No. 4,836,375, issued on June 6, 1989, not only does acaay ?5 with the usual open-case carrier formed of heavier paperboard, 2~ but provides a fully enclosed package with all its advantages.
~7 The package provides for a double thickness of paperboard at the ~8 edges of the top panel to enable a user to grasp the carrier at ~9 the reinforced edges in order to lift it. Although this is a 30 convenient way of lifting and handling the package,' it was found 31 that there is still a surprisingly strong consumer demand for a 32 carrier of this type which can be lifted with one hand in order 33 to free the other hand for other tasks.
39 To provide the carrier with a handle capable of 35 withstanding the severe stresses involved in lifting a very 36 heavy package would appear to require the use of considerably i~ rt-~.~.
37 heavier paperboard or paperboard which has been significantly 3$ reinforced. Since this is to be avoided for economic reasons it 3~ caould seem that a carrier of this type could not practically be 40 provided with a handle enabling the package to be lifted with 91 one hand. It is, nevertheless, an object of the invention to ~2 provide such a carrier with a handle which can be used to safely 43 lift the heavy package without damaging it and without danger of 44 the bottles falling out. Moreover, it is a further object to ~5 provide a carrier and handle arrangement of this type which is economical to manufacture.
~7 Brief Summary c~f the Invention 4$ This invention comprises a carrier having side panels ~1~ and end panels foldably connected to a bottom panel. In a 5t7 preferred form of the invention, for use with bottles, the upper 51 portions of the side panels adjacent the top panel are angled to 5~ conform generally to the tapered neck portions of the bottles 53 and are connected to a top panel. At least one of the side 59 panels contains a handle opening comprising two elongated spaced 55 edges extending transversely thereof between the angled portion 56 of the side panel and the bottom panel. The handle opening 57 preferably extends into the adjacent angled upper side portion 5$ and into the adjacent bottom panel. This arrangement is 5~ sufficiently strong to permit the carrier to be lifted by the handle without using thicker, more expensive paperboard or reinforced paperboard.
In addition to a handle opening being provided for ~3 lifting the carrier, the top panel of the carrier is provided ~i9 with folded-under end flaps which permit the carrier to be 65 lifted by the end portions of the top panel, b~ In addition, reinforcement flaps foldably connected to ~7 the side panels may be integrally formed with the top panel &$ reinforcement flaps to strengthen the end portions of the side 69 panels as well. The side panel reinforcement flaps are 70 connected to the end panels by tuck flaps which allow the 71 formation of upstanding end panels and folded-under side panel 72 reinforcement flaps. The top panel is also provided with bottle 73 neck retainer openings which assist in supporting the package 79 when the handle opening is used to lift the carrier.

- 3 _ ~ f ~ ~ i~ ~ !~.
75 Preferab.hy, the top panel reinforcement flaps may contain at 76 least one bottle neck retainer opening aligned with a bottle 77 neck retainer opening in the top panel.
$ I.-~ addition, the distance between the fold lines 79 connectin.~ the tuck flaps to the end panels is less than the $fl distance aetween the side edges of the bottom panel, and the $1 angle forged by the diagonal fold line with the fold lines 8~ connectin:~ the tuck flaps to the end panels is less than 45°.
$3 This causes the end panels to be biased inwardly to resist any $4 tendency of the bottles to be pushed out the end panels, 85 particularly when the carrier is lifted by the side panel handle $f~ opening.
$7 Tf the carrier is used to package beverage cans which $$ have no tapered neck portion, the angled side panel portions $~ need not be provided, in which case the handle opening would ~ extend from the top panel to the bottom panel.
~1 Other features and aspects of the invention, as coell as other benefits thereof, will readily be ascertained from the ~3 more detailed description of the preferred embodiment which follocas , ~5 Brief Description of the Drawinas FTG, l is a pictorial view of the carrier of the present ~ invention as it would appear in normal resting condition ~$ supported on the bottom panel; ' F3:G, 2 is a plan view of a blank from which the7carrier 100 of the present invention is fabricated;
101 FIG. 3 is a pictorial view of the blank of FIG. 2 in a 1c~''~ partially folded state, the bottles about which the blank is 103 folded being omitted for purpose of clarity;
109 FTG. 4 is a pictorial view similar to that of FIG. 3, 105 but showing the blank in a later stage of fabrication;
3.06 FTGS. 5A, 5B and 5C are enlarged partial side views of 107 the locking means for securing the fastening strips of the 10$ carrier in place, sequentially showing the main steps in the 109 locking process;
110 FIGS. 5D, 5E and 5F are enlarged partial sectional views 111 taken through the center of the locking tabs shown in FIGS. 5A, ~~~~f'~
-4 - ~., a.; :-~ ) ~ ;; ry.
112 5B and 5C, respectively, and corresponding to the locking stages li3 illustrated therein;
114 FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial plan view of a portion of 115 a modified blank, showing the intersection of the bottom and end 116 panel score lines;
117 FIG. 7 is an enlarged partial plan view of the blank of 118 FIG. 2, showing the handle arrangement in more detail;
119 FIG. 8 is a pictorial view of the carrier of the present 120 invention similar to that of FIG. 1, but in greater detail;
121 FIG. 9 is a partial side view of the carrier of the 122 invention shown in the process of being lifted by the hand of a 123 user; and 129 FIG. 10 is a top view of the carrier of FIG. 9, with the 123 hand of the user being eliminated for the sake of clarity.
126 ~etai.led l7escription of the Preferred Embodiment 127 Referring to FIG. 1, a carton 10 formed according to the 12$ invention comprises a top panel 12 containing a number of spaced 129 openings 14 through which the top portions of the necks of 130 bottles B extend. Tabs 16, which are foldably connected to the 131 perimeters of the openings, extend up from the top panel 12 and 132 engage the bottom edges of the bottle caps 18 to assist in 133 holding the bottles in place.
134 The top panel 12 i.s connected to side panels 20 and 22 133 by short sloping side panel portions 24 and 26, and a handle 28 13~i is provided in the side panel 20. In addition, a bottom panel, 137 not visible in this view, is connected to the side panels 20 and 13$ 22 and to partial or short end panels 30. This design enables 13~ the bottle labels to be seen through the open end spaces between 140 the top panel and the short end panels, which is advantageous 141 for product identification and for illustrating the size of the 192 bottles, yet the end panels are large enough to provide adequate 193 space for additional printed advertising or other indicia and to 144 hold the end bottles in the carrier.
115 Referring to FIG. 2, a production blank for forming the 146 carrier of FIG. 1 i.s indicated generally by reference numeral 147 32. The production blank 32 is comprised of a bottom section 34 198 connected by score lines 36 and 38 to side panel sections 20 and 14~ 22, respectively. The side panel section 20 is connected by a - , ~; ~:, ~) ::~ r.) E
150 score live 40 to angled side panel section 24, which is 151 connected by score line 92 to top panel section 12. The top 152 panel section 12 is connected by a score line 44 to top 153 fastening strip 26, and the side panel section 22 is connected 159 by a score line 46 to a side fastening strip 48. The top 155 fastening strip 26 contains primary male locking tabs 50, the 156 bases of which are generally aligned with score line 52, and 157 secondary male locking tabs 54 which are aligned with the 158 primary locking tabs 50. In like manner the fastening strip 48 153 contains arimary female locking apertures 56 aligned with the 160 locking tabs 50, and the side panel section 22 contains 16l secondary female locking apertures 58 extending from the score 162 line 46. The secondary locking apertures 58 are aligned with 163 the secondary locking tabs 54.
164 Connected to the bottom section 34 along score lines 60 165 are end panel sections 30, corresponding to the end panels 30 of 166 the carrier of FIG. 1, which are connected to tuck flaps 62 by 167 score lines 64. The score lines 64 in this arrangement are 168 e:ctensions of the score lines 36 and 38. The score lines 60 163 extend beyond the bottom panel section 34 to the ends of the 170 blank, forming reinforcement flaps 66 and 68. The reinforcement 171 flaps 66 are comprised of reinforcement flap sections 12A, 24A
37~ and 20A, which are connected by the score lines 60 to the top 173 panel section 12, the angled side panel section 24 and'the main 174 side panel section 20, respectively. The reinforcement flaps 68 1.75 are comprised of reinforcement flap sections 22A and 48A, which J,7~ are connected by score lines 60 to side panel section 22 and 177 side fastening strip 48, respectively. Two of the tuck flaps 62 17-~ axe connected to reinforcement flaps 20A by fold lines 70, while 173 the other tuck flaps 62 are connected to the reinforcement flaps 1$0 22A by fold lines 72. The score lines 60 are generally 3.51 perpendicular to the score lines 38, 36, 40, 42, 44 and 46 so as 1$2 to result in a carrier having panels that extend generally at 1$3 right angles to each other. In the arrangement shown, the fold 1$4 lines 70 and 72 form an angle of 45°- with the score lines 60 and 1$5 64.
186 Still referring to FIG. 2, the top panel section 12 1$7 contains twelve neck retainer openings arranged in thrFe rows of 188 four openings each, The openings 14 in the outer two rows 189 include four tabs 16 foldably connected to the top panel section 190 which enables the necks of bottles contained in the carrier to 191 protrude thraugh the openings and yet be engaged substantially 192 entirely around the periphery of the neck below the bottle cap 193 to hold the neck in place. The openings 74 in the innermost row 194 of openings are larger in a transverse direction than the 195 openings 14, and are provided with only two tabs 76 which, like 196 the tabs 16, are foldably connected to the top panel section.
197 The larger opening with fewer neck retainer tabs facilitates the 1~3$ closing of the top panel of the carrier over the bottles to be 193 packaged, as will be more clear later. In addition, each of the 200 reinforcement flaps 12A contains a neck retainer opening 14A and 201 a neck retainer opening 74A. As illustrated, the openings 14A
202 preferably are identical to the openings 14, while the openings 203 74A preferably are identical in shape and size to the openings 204 74 but are not provided with neck retaining tabs in order to 205 further facilitate the closing of the top panel over bottles to 206 be packaged. The reinforcement flaps 12A are further provided 207 with cutout portions 78 which take up the space in which neck 20$ retainer openings similar to openings 14A could have been 2(79 located, and reinforcement flaps 48A and 22A are provided with :210 cutout portions adjacent their outer edges. These cutout 211 portions facilitate the folding of the blank by eliminating some 212 of the paperboard in congested areas where paperboard folds Z13 would otherwise come together and where 'the extra thicknesses 214 of such paperboard are not necessary to the functioning of the 21.5 carrier.
?i~ Referring to FTGS. 2 and 3, and assuming that the 217 surface of the blank facing the viewer in FIG. 2 is the inside 218 surface of the blank, the first step in folding the blank 32 to 21~ form a carrier is to push the tuck flaps 62 upward and toward 220 the score lines 64. This causes the paperboard to fold along 221 the fold lines 70 and 72, moving the fold lines up out of the 222 plane of the blank and raising the end panel sections 30 and the 223 reinforcement flaps 66 and 68. It also causes the side panel 224 section 22 and the fastening strip section 48 to be hinged up as 225 a unit about scare line 38, and the side panel section 20, the _ 7 _ c~ ~a »/~ ~; ~ ~ I7 ~J ~ ~i tT :J ~ ':i 226 angled section 24, the top panel section 12 and the fastening 227 strip 26 to be hinged up as a unit about the score line 36. The 228 reinforcement flaps 66 and 68 are continued to be folded about 229 score lines o0 until they overlie the adjacent panel sections as 230 shown in FIG. 3. The neck retainer openings 19A and 79A are 231 aligned with and overlie the end openings 14 and in the adjacent 232 rows of openings to allow the necks of the bottles to protrude 233 through both openings. It should be understood -that although 234 bottles are not shown in FTG. 3 so as not to interfere with the 235 illustration of the carrier components, in actual practice the 236 bottles to be packaged would first be positioned on the bottom 237 section of the blank, after which the folding would proceed as 233 outlined above.
23~ The blank, still in the intermediate form of FIG. 3, is 240 continued to be folded along score lines 38 and 36 to bring the 241 aide panel sections 22 and 20 up to vertical, and is also folded 242 about score lines 40 and 42 to form the intermediate 293 configuration shown in FIG. 4. The tuck flaps 62 at this point 244 are face to face with the adjacent portions of the reinforcement 245 flaps 22A and 20A, and the top panel section 12 is in the 246 process of being folded down over the bottles which would be 2~7 sitting on the bottom section. At this point it can be seen 248 that if the top panel of the carrier were connected directly to 249 the side panel without being separated by the angled section 24, 250 there would be no room for the top panel section to be~pivoted 251 down over the top of the adjacent row of bottles. Similarly, if 252 the neck retainer openings 74 were the same size as the other 253 close- fitting openings 14, the arc through which the openings 254 74 move as the top panel section is pivoted downwardly over the 255 tops of the bottles would be too short to enable the openings 74 256 to be moved over the bottle necks. The angled panel section 24 257 and the enlarged neck openings 74 thus allow the top panel 258 section 12, and all the neck retainer openings therein, to be 259 properly aligned with the bottles as the top panel section is 260 folded down over the bottles. In order to be certain that the 261 neck retainer openings 74A in the reinforcement flap 12A do not 262 interfere with the movement of the top panel during this folding r... i; o-.~ 'J :.~ -:.l _~:
263 operation, all neck retainer flaps on these openings preferably 26~~ are omitted as shown.
265 Further downward folding of the top panel section is 266 continued until the fastening strip 26 overlies the fastening 267 strip 48 and then is connected thereto to form the finished 268 carier shown in FIG. 1. The angled panel 24 and the angled 269 panel formed from the combined fastening strips 26 and 98 form 270 the same angle with the main side panel portions so that the 271 carrier is symmetrically arranged. The end panels 30 are held 272 in erect vertical position by the folded tuck flaps. The 273 battles in the carrier, which are tightly packed and abut the 274 side panels 20 and 22, also abut the tuck flaps, pushing against 275 them and pinning them against the adjacent folded-over 276 reinforcement flaps 20A and 22A. Thus the bottles in the 2'77 package assist in holding the tuck flaps in position.
278 The individual folded-over reinforcement flaps which 279 make up the reinforcement flaps 66 and 68 provide a double 280 thickness of paperboard along the edges of the top panel of the 281 carrier, thereby strengthening the top panel to permit a user to 282 grasp the underside of the top panel adjacent its edges and lift 28~ the carrier, .289 Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5D, the fastening strip 26 285 is shown as 3.t is ready to engage the fastening strip 48. The 286 strip 26 has been folded back along the score line 52' so that 28'7 the underside of the strip 26 is exposed while the outer~side of 288 the fastening strip 48 is seen. This separates the primary 289 locking tabs 50 from the strip 26. The primary locking tab 50 290 is aligned with the primary locking aperture 56, and the 291 secondary locking tab 54 is aligned with the secondary locking Z92 aperture 58. The locking aperture 58 is preferably covered by 293 tabs 80 foldably connected to the side panel 22 along fold line 299 81 and to the score line 46. To complete the primary lock, the 295 locking tab 50 is inserted into the aperture 56 and the strip 26 296 is folded back down along the score line 52, as best illustrated 297 in FIG. 5E. This causes the tab 50 to pivot about the edge 82 298 of the aperture 56 and to come to rest face to face with the 299 inside surface of the strip 48. The secondary or punch tab 59 '~~~i'"'?~~
~~ LJ Ire ~. :,~ r~ y.
300 at this point is aligned with the secondary aperture 58, as 301 illustrated in FIG. 5B.
302 The next step in locking the locking strips together is :303 to insert the punch tab 54 into the aperture 58, forcing the tab 304 through the slightly narrower opening between the foldable tabs 305 80. This step completes the locking operation so that the 306 strips are connected, as shown in FIGS. 5C and 5F, by both the 307 primary and secondary locks. It should be understood that while 308 this is the preferred locking arrangement because of its holding 303 power under heavy loads, other mechanical locking designs could 3i0 tie used instead, so long as they are capable of securely holding 311 thr~ lacking strips together. If preferred, however, the strips 312 could be glued together instead of being mechanically 313 interlocked. If even more locking integrity is required, both a 314 mechanical lock and glue could be employed in the same package.
315 Tn the description of the tuck flaps in connection with 316 the blank of FIG. 2, the fold lines 70 and 72 which form the 317 tuck flaps 62 were described as forming an angle of 45° with the 31$ score lines 60 and 64. This is the normal arrangement of tuck 31~ flaps, and results in the end panel 30 being generally 320 vertically disposed. In FIG. 6 a modified arrangement is shown 321 wherein the score lines 64' are offset from the score lines 36' 322 and 38' so that the distance between the score lines 36' and 38' 323 is greater than the distance between the score lines '64'. In 324 addition, instead of the fold lines 70' and 72' making 45g 325 angles with the score lines 60' and 64', the fold lines 70' and 326 72' form an angle less than 45° with the score lines 64' and an 327 angle greater than 45Q with the score lines 60'. With this 32$ arrangement the end panel 30' tends to bow slightly inwardly 32~ toward the contents of the carrier after the package has been 330 fabricated. This guards against slack end panels and ,the 331 consequent problem of the end bottles sliding within the package 332 and bumping adjacent bottles. The specific angles and offsets 333 that may be used will vary w9.th the size of the package and the 334 amount of inward bias desired, with greater offsets being 335 required with greater angular departures from 45°-. It should be 336 understood, however, that the rectilinear arrangement of the 337 panels does not permit large variations from the FIG. 2 -10 - ;~ ~ 'i d ~ ~'. a i.
F.~ 1i 1.. ;~ ~.i _i .u 333 embodiment. A preferred design, far example, combines a 3/32 339 inch offset with a 43° acute angle formed by score lines 64' 340 with fold lines 70' and 72'. In such an arrangement the obtuse 341 angle formed by score line 60' with fold lines 70' and 72' would 342 be 47Q so that the sum of the acute and obtuse angles is always 343 substantially 90°.
344 Referring now to FIG. 7, which shows the handle arrangemer 3=~5 of FIG. 2 in more detail, it can be seen that the handle 28 comprise 346 an opening which extends beyond the score line 36 into the bottc 347 panel section 34 at 83 and beyond the score line 40 into the angle 343 erection 24 at 85. The extensions 83 and 85 are arcuate in shape err 343 preferably are in the form of a semi-circle whose diameter is aligne 330 with the adjacent score line 36 and 40. When the blank is forme 331 into a carrier the portions of the handle opening located in tr 352 upper regions of the side panel 34 and the short angled side pane 353 portion 24 are the semi-circular cutouts, as best shown in FTG. 8.
354 As shown in FT_G. 7, handle flaps 84 cover a substantial 355 portion of the handle opening and are foldably connected to the 356 side panel section 20 along the elongated edges 86 of the handle 357 opening. The opposite or adjacent edges of the flaps 84 meet in 358 the center of the handle opening along slit 88. Preferably the 359 edges are connected together in the blank by widely spaced 360 sections of uncut paperboard, not shown, which can readily be 361 broken or torn when the fingers of a user are inserted'into the 362 handle opening of a carrier formed from the blank.
3~i3 Preferably the ends of the fold lines of the flaps 84 364 are spaced a short distance from the score lines 36 and 40, with 36a the slit 88 terminating short of the score lines. As a result 366 the flap edges 90 connecting the free edges of the flaps 84 to 367 their fold lines 86 are angled or curved fairly sharply away 368 from the score lines 36 and 40. This creates substantial areas 369 in the handle opening adjacent the score lines 36 and 40 which 370 are uncovered by the handle opening flaps 84. Although this 373 arrangement is not essential to the stress distribution 372 phenomenon discussed hereinafter, it is beneficial in several 373 respects. It eliminates stock at a point which could interfere 379 with the stripping of the blank from the press arid it provides a 375 visual guide to the user as to where the handle opening is and -11- ~ ~ ? '3 ~ ~ !~
376 how it should be used. In addition, the shorter free edge of 377 the flap provides less resistance to movement of the flap past 378 underlying bottles which may be packed tightly up against the 379 side panel 20.
380 Referring to FIG. 9, this view shows the distortion of 381 the panel 20 that occurs when a user lifts the carrier by the 382 handle. The handle opening is illustrated as facing upwardly, 383 a5 it would if the carrier is resting on the side panel 22. It 384 will be appreciated that although the carrier would typically 383 rest on its bottom panel, the user, in grasping the handle while 386 the carrier is resting on its bottom panel, will normally tilt 3$7 the carrier up so that the panel 20 and the handle 28 are in the 388 position shown in FIG. 9 before the user actually lifts the 383 carrier. In that position, when the fingers press down on one 390 of the flaps 84 the other flap 84 is contacted by the back of 391 the fingers and is thereby folded downwardly a distance 392 sufficient to allow the fingers to enter the handle opening.
393 The first flap is engaged by the pads of the fingers and is 394 folded down about its fold line. Continued pressure against the 395 first flap folds it up against the underside of the panel 20, as 39~ shown in dotted lines. As the user begins lifting the carrier, 397 the lifting action causes the engaged side panel portion to bow 39$ upwardly, while the unengaged side panel portion remains flat.
399 When this happens, the stresses created at the ends of the 400 handle opening cause the arcuate edges to distort inwardly 401 toward each other. As shown in FIG. 10, the flap 84 attached to 4t~~ the left side of the handle opening has been pushed or folded 403 downwardly enough to allow entry of the fingers into the handle 404 opening. The elongated edge at the right side o.f the opening is 405 shown in bowed condition and the folds 36 and 40 are shown as 40S having been distorted inwardly in the region of the handle 407 opening, pulling the upper portions of the adjacent angled side 40$ panel 24 and the adjacent perpendicular bottom panel 34 inwardly 409 also. The smooth uniform upward bowing of the side panel 20 410 indicates a uniform distribution of the lifting stresses, 411 avoiding a concentration of stresses in any one area and thus 41~ avoiding tearing of the paperboard.

n ~ a 7 ti is 413 Tt will be understood that the distortions illustrated 414 occur generally similarly at opposite sides of the main side 415 panel portion 20 along the fold lines 36 and 40 and at both ends 416 of the handle opening, even though one end of the main side 417 panel portion 20 is substantially perpendicular to the bottom 418 panel 34 while the other end forms an angle substantially 419 greater than 90~ with the short angled side panel portion 24.
920 Thus although the handle opening extends into adjacent panels at 421 different angles, the distribution of stresses throughout the 422 main side panel portion 20 and the resistance of the ends of the 423 hanc~lle opening to tearing are surprisingly similarly to what the 424 expepted results would be if both panels 24 and 34 extended at 425 right angles to the main side panel portion 20.
-X26 By extending transversely of the main side panel portion 427 20 and completely across its width, the handle is capable of 428 lifting the heavy carrier without requiring the carrier to be 429 formed from reinforced paperboard or paperboard of greater 430 pauper. The arcuate shape of the handle opening ends prevents 431 the lifting stresses from tearing the ends of the handle 432 opening, Tt has been found that the off-center location of the 433 handle resulting from the top panel of the carrier lying in a 434 plane spaced from the closest end of the handle opening has 435 little or no impact on the ability of the handle to lift the 436 carrier or on the stress distribution pattern. The fact that 437 the handle is lightly off center with respect to the~overall 433 extent of the side panel is not discernible during lifting and 439 parrying of the carrier. The carrier appears instead to be -~-~0 uniformly balanced.
441 While a strong connection between the angled side panel 442 portion 24 and the attachment strip 48 is essential in 443 preventing the side panel 22 from becoming detached while the 499 parrier is being lifted or carried by the handle 28 and allowing 445 bottles to fall from the carrier, the overall ability of the 446 carrier to carry such a heavy load is believed to be favorably 447 affected by the penetration of the necks of the bottles through 498 the openings in the top panel 12. The edges of t he neck 449 openings and the surrounding neck retainers apparently function 4~0 as additional bottle support surfaces when the carrier is lifted y13~ :1 ~
G.i fd 3'JI ~. ~ G
451 and carried by the handle 28, thereby relieving some of the load 452 bearing requirements from the side panel 22. Additionally, the 453 tight fit of the angled portions of the side panels against the 454 adjacent bottles and the bowing in of the end panels in the 455 manner pr:puiously described assist in maintaining the bottles in 456 place when the handle is used to lift the carrier.
457 Alhough the preferred embodiment has been described in 458 oonnection with a handle opening that extends through the fold 459 lines connecting the side panel 20 with the bottom panel 34 and 460 th.e angled side panel portion 24, the handle opening may be made 461 shorter, 4f desired, so that it terminates in the side panel 20 462 short of the fold lines 36 and 40. Such an arrangement is 463 feasible if the side panel 20 is wide enough to allow the handle 464 opening to be of sufficient size for the fingers of a user to 465 enter whey lifting and carrying the carrier. The side panel 20 466 in suct2 a design would bow up during lifting much in the same 467 manner a shown in FIG. 10.
468 Although the carrier of the present invention is more 469 convenient t o lift due to the arrangement of the transverse 970 handle opening and the manner in which the side panel containing 471 the handlr~ opening distorts to permit easy finger access into 472 the opening, the carrier nevertheless may, if desired, be lifted 473 by the reinforced edge portions of the top panel formed by the 474 underturn~d flap of the top panel.
475 It should be understood that while the preferred 476 embodiment/ has been disclosed for use in connection with 477 bottles, the idea of alternatively utilizing folded 478 reinforcement flaps or a side panel handle as a means for 479 lifting the package can apply to cans also. In such a design 480 the angled panel connecting the top panel to the side panel need 481 not be incorporated since there would be no need to extend the 482 arc of t3~e top panel in order to properly align neck retainer 483 openings with bottle necks. The top panel could in such a case 4E4 extend at right angles from the side panel, and the handle 485 opening would extend across the side panel and into the adjacent 486 top and bottom panels. If required, portions of the top panel 487 could be struck dawn against the tops of the cans to assist in 488 holding the cans in place.

19 7 Ta f n ~
~J t3 ~.I '~.) ~ .J
48~ It should now be apparent that although a preferred 490 embodiment of the invention has been described, it is 491 contemplated that those skilled in the art may make changes to 492 certain features of the preferred embodiment without altering 493 the overall basic function and concept of the invention and 494 without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as 495 defined in the appended claims.

Claims (7)

1. A wrap-around article carrier, comprising: a bottom panel having side edges and end edges;
side panels connected to the side edges of the bottom panel by fold lines;
end panels connected to the end edges of the bottom panel by fold lines;
a top panel connecting the side panels;
at least one of the side panels having an angled upper portion adjacent the top panel, the angled portion forming an obtuse angle with said one side panel and an obtuse angle with the top panel, the angled portion being connected to the top panel; and said one side panel containing a handle opening comprising two elongated spaced edges extending transversely of said one side panel between the angled portion of said one side panel and the bottom panel, the handle opening being large enough for the fingers of a user to be inserted in order to lift the carrier from the underside of said one side panel adjacent one of the elongated spaced edges of the handle opening, the handle opening extending into the angled upper portion of said one side panel a distance less than the distance from said one side panel to the top panel and into the bottom panel.

2. The carrier of claim 1, wherein each elongated edge of the handle opening is foldably connected to a flap, the edges of the flaps opposite their foldable connections to the elongated handle opening edges meeting intermediate the elongated edges of the handle opening whereby either flap can be pressed down and folded about its foldable connection.

3. The carrier of claim 2, wherein the length of the meeting edges of the flaps is substantially less than the height of said one side panel, whereby substantial portions of the handle opening in said one side panel adjacent the foldable connection between the side panel and the top panel and adjacent the foldable connection between said side panel and said bottom panel are exposed.

4. The carrier of claim 1, wherein the top panel contains a plurality of neck retainer openings for receiving the necks of bottles contained in the carrier.

5. A blank for forming a wrap-around article carrier, comprising:
a bottom panel section;
side panel sections connected to the bottom panel section by score lines;
end panel sections connected to the bottom panel section by score lines;
a top panel section connected to at least one of the side panel sections by a score line, the top panel section having end edges;
at least one of the side panel sections containing a score line substantially parallel to and spaced from the score line connecting the side panel section to the top panel section, the side panel section between the spaced score lines comprising an angled panel in a carrier formed from the blank;
and said one side panel section containing a handle opening comprising two elongated spaced edges extending transversely of said one side panel section between the angled portion of said one side panel section and the bottom panel, the handle opening being large enough for the fingers of a user to be inserted in order to lift the carrier formed from the blank.

6. The carrier blank of claim 5, wherein the top panel section and the other side panel section contain locking means adapted to interlock with each other in a carrier formed from the blank to hold the blank in carrier form.

7. The carrier blank of claim 5, including reinforcement flaps connected to the end edges of the top panel by score lines, the reinforcement flaps being adapted to be folded about their score lines to a position facing the underside of the top panel of a carrier formed from the blank to reinforce the ends of the top panel.